By A Correspondent
The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), the apex body of advertising agencies in the country, has announced its disapproval of the targeting of the recent Tanishq ad featuring an inter-faith couple. “The threats against Tanishq as well as its employees, which led to the withdrawal of the advertisement, are a matter of great regret and concern.”
Adds the communique: “The advertisement in question, in fact, had been viewed at the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) by an independent panel- The Consumer Complaints Council, which is representative of multiple stakeholders from industry, civil society, lawyers and consumer activists. The panel found nothing in the advertisement that was indecent or objectionable or repulsive that could lead to grave and widespread offence. There is a consensus among all allied bodies and The International Advertising Association (IAA) India Chapter and The Advertising Club also support this.”